At Marvel Stadium on Good Friday, Carlton crushed North Melbourne in a merciless second-half blitz, winning 24.9 (153) to 11.5 (71).
The Kangaroos suffered their sixth defeat in six games and seven of eight in Good Friday matches as the Blues ruthlessly scored 15 goals in the third and fourth quarters.
Charlie Curnow and Zac Williams led the scoring with four goals each as the Blues defeated the struggling West Coast team last time out to clinch their first victory of the season and bank a vital percentage-booster under the dome to move to 2-4.
It was just the third time the Blues have kicked a score in excess of 150 points since the end of 2013.
George Hewett was damaging all afternoon in the 82-point triumph, leading all-comers with 34 disposals, 21 contested possessions, nine tackles, a goal, seven centre clearances and eight score involvements.
The return of hard-nosed midfielder George Wardlaw was the only bright spot for Alastair Clarkson’s Roos. His unwavering attack on the pitch led to 21 disposals, 13 contested possessions, five clearances and a goal.
Wardlaw had to spend the last two weeks getting fitter for the VFL team after suffering a high-grade hamstring strain during the preseason.
Although he could and would control Wardlaw’s playing time during the week, coach Alastair Clarkson was unable to quell the player’s enthusiasm for the game.
Prior to a 10-disposal second period, Wardlaw had six possessions in the first quarter, all of which were contested.
- CLEARANCE DOMINATION INSPIRES BLUES’ UNSUNG HERO
When Carlton’s midfield is active, players like Patrick Cripps and Sam Walsh seem to get all the praise.
However, George Hewett led its thrilling 85-point victory, demonstrating his worth as the unsung hero of Michael Voss’ on-ball brigade.
Hewett really set the tone for Carlton by making 21 of his 34 disposals in the first half. He finished with 21 contested possessions, eight score involvements, 12 clearances, and a goal.
Additionally, the two-way Hewett contributed nine tackles to the defence.
Following his goal in the third quarter, Hawks great Jason Dunstall observed that Hewett was “absolutely smashing” North.
“This dude is in outstanding shape. Walsh and Cripps are two well-known Carlton players in the middle of the pitch, but he has put together a strong season’, Demons great Garry Lyon continued.
In a pivotal period of the game, Hewett’s performance was crucial to Carlton’s dominance of clearances 46–37 and contested possessions 151–131.
The inside midfielder, who entered this game ranked No. 2 in the AFL in terms of disposals, No. 4 in terms of tackles, No. 6 in terms of contested possessions, and No. 6 in terms of clearances, just goes unnoticed.
Regarding Hewett, four-time premiership Hawk Jordan Lewis stated, “He is a player that receives less attention from the opposition, but you still have to put yourself in position to impact and be able to contribute.”
“When there have been numerous errors, he has been the cleanest player on the pitch.”
Nathan Buckley, a former Collingwood coach, observed that Hewett merely “does the basics well.”
“He never stops moving around clearance.” Buckley remarked, “He keeps going to ball, and if he doesn’t, he’s putting himself in first receive position.”
He can move hand and foot to the left or right. In the little ten meters he has around the competition, he has been efficient.
- Despite “shining light,” ROOS’ defensive struggles persist.
North Melbourne’s defensive problems persisted with yet another disastrous performance.
After giving up triple figures eighteen times previous season, it was the fifth time in six games that North has allowed more than 100 points in a single defeat.
Even though Roos coach Alastair Clarkson had warned before the game that his squad needed to improve their defence, this was the highest score they had given up in 2025 in a match that Fox Footy caller Gerard Whateley described as “sadly uncompetitive.”
The damage was mostly done in the second half when Carlton scored 15 goals to the Roos’ five, which was mostly the result of North being overpowered at the coalface.
Roos great David King described Carlton’s six goals from seven inside 50 entries during the fourth quarter onslaught as “a ridiculous number” that demonstrated the team was “not fighting the fight.”
“I haven’t seen a number like this from clearance,” King continued later, “because they’ve given up 75 points and their best players and A-graders are in there.”
At least Roos supporters had something to celebrate with George Wardlaw’s comeback.
Following his goal in the third quarter, Whateley referred to Wardlaw as the Roos’ “glimmer of hope,” and Hawks legend Jason Dunstall branded the 20-year-old a “shining light.”
However, eliminating sub-affected players, King said at three-quarter time it was “damning” that Wardlaw had the most disposals for North in a team-low 60% of playing time.
At halftime, triple premiership Lion Jonathan Brown said, “There are two North Melbourne teams: one with George Wardlaw and one without.”
He is a player with bursts. He will undoubtedly be limited in his first game back today, but he is really powerful and entertaining. He’s a little outdated.
“He is desperate; desperation is evident in everything he does.”
According to Nathan Buckley, a former Collingwood coach, Wardlaw is “effective but comes to mind as scruffy.”
He’s simply really skilled at winning the ball up close and making it almost impossible to tackle.
“He usually finds a few meters to make a decision if he finds the ball inside.” Although some of his kicks aren’t very good, they help his team gain territory, the ball, and momentum.
His ability to win the ball close and make it nearly hard to tackle is really exceptional.
“He usually finds a few meters to make a decision if he finds the ball inside.” His team gains territory, the ball, and momentum thanks to his kicks, even though some of them aren’t very good.
Lions great Jonathan Brown stated that it was “unlike” the big Roo, who had struggled with a hamstring ailment in the early rounds, while Demons star Garry Lyon thinks Xerri would have “taken that personally.”
Brown continued, “TDK really launched into the game from that point on.”
Xerri finished with 14 disposals, 11 tackles, and 43 hit-outs, while De Koning finished with 11 touches, 24 hit-outs, and a goal.
Kangaroos legend David King stated on Fox Footy that “Xerri embarrassed TDK the last time they played and there was discussion about some of the tactics, whether they were legit and whether they were over the top in terms of physicality.”
“Don’t let what you know defeat you. De Koning is the best ruckman in the competition and has seven goals this season. He can grab it out of the ruck and have shots on goal.”
“Xerri simply moved too quickly.” He wasn’t prepared or ready. And it is a declaration from a ruckman on the march.”
